''I'm a Trojan,'' Orgeron said. ''I'm a Trojan and I'm not wavering from that. I'm here. I made a commitment to (Athletic Director) Pat Haden and (Coach) Lane Kiffin and the USC Trojan family.''

Orgeron is three years into his second stint at USC, and recently had his title changed from ''defensive coordinator'' to ''assisant head coach.'' Orgeron's duties haven't really changed, though. He remains the coach of the defensive line and the recruiting coordinator and has the ear of Coach Lane Kiffin in matters concerning the defense in general.

(on deciding to come to USC...)PENDERGAST: ``I think it’s a great place. It’s a great university. Obviously getting an opportunity to work with Coach Kiffin. I’ve had a lot of respect for him over the years, coaching against him. I’m glad I’m coaching with him instead of coaching against him. I just think there’s a lot of great opportunities here. I like the personnel that we have defensively, and getting the opportunity to work at a great university.’’

Bailey ranked third on the team with 80 tackles as a sophomore in 2012 and figures to play a big part in the defensive scheme of Pendergast, hired last month. Bailey recently posted an update on Twitter that indicated he had surgery on Jan. 20 and faced a six-month recovery.

Pendergast met with a small group of reporters for the first time since his hiring and answered a wide variety of questions. Some highlights...

-- Pendergast declined to say whether USC would hire either a linebackers coach or a secondary coach, or both. Both spots are open, after linebackers coach Scottie Hazelton took a job as Nevada's defensive coordinator and USC fired secondary coach Marvin Sanders. Coach Lane Kiffin previously said Pendergast wanted to personally coach the secondary, but Pendergast declined to confirm that. He said that, often, defensive meetings would include players from all positions.

-- Pendergast confirmed that USC would run what he calls a ''52'' defense, which includes a base 3-4 package with a lot of flexibility. Depending on the personnel, opponent and situation, USC could have anywhere from three to five players at the line of scrimmage, and will have safeties playing at various depths.

The shakeup on USC's defensive coaching staff continued Thursday with the firing of secondary coach Marvin Sanders, who spent less than a year on the staff.

Clancy Pendergast, hired last week as USC's new defensive coordinator, will also serve as the position coach for the defensive backs in 2013, Coach Lane Kiffin said in a statement. Pendergast has not been available for comment since his hiring.

Kiffin's statement read, ''We wish Marvin Sanders and his family the best of luck. Marvin did a great job for us coaching our secondary and in recruiting. But with the hiring of Clancy Pendergast as our defensive coordinator, we decided to go in a different direction based on Clancy's desire to oversee the defensive backs unit.''

Sanders, 45, joined USC's staff last February after a three-season run as secondary coach at Nebraska. In 2012, USC ranked fifth in the Pac-12 Conference in pass defense and allowed an average of 236.6 passing yards per game. In 2011, the Trojans ranked eighth in the conference in pass defense (276.0 yards per game).

USC might have the potential to hire two assistant coaches. USC linebackers coach Scottie Hazelton will reportedly become defensive coordinator at Nevada when new Coach Brian Polian announces his full staff. Kiffin, under some criticism to relinquish play-calling duties, now has the room on staff to hire another offensive assistant, if he desires.

No matter what, USC is in for a change on defense in 2013, with Clancy Pendergast taking over as defensive architect for Monte Kiffin. But how dramatic will the change be?

Pendergast, in his stops throughout college football and the NFL, is known for multiple schemes. It's possible that USC could regularly play some 3-4 defense for the first time in a couple decades, and Pendergast in recent years has had some creative plans to try to slow Oregon's dynamic offense.

Here is today's Register story about what the Trojans can expect from Pendergast...

USC announced Friday that it has hired Clancy Pendergast as its defensive coordinator. Pendergast, most recently the defensive coordinator at Cal, will replace Monte Kiffin as the Trojans' defensive architect.

In a statement, Coach Lane Kiffin said, "Clancy is a perfect fit for us. He is a very experienced and successful defensive coordinator. He plays an attacking-style defense with multiple looks and, having spent the last three years in the Pac-12, he knows how to defend the various kinds of offenses that we see in this conference.

“What was particularly appealing to me was how he took a Cal defense that was seventh in the Pac-12 in total defense the year before he arrived and then led the league his first two years. That's our goal here, to have that same kind of impact. I also liked that he has coached at the highest level, getting to the Super Bowl in the NFL.”

The hiring had been anticipated for days, and Pendergast didn't waste any time getting to work. USC is hosting a large number of recruits on campus this weekend, and Pendergast is there to meet them.

At Cal, Pendergast, 45, had the Pac-12 Conference's top defense in 2010 and 2011 — in terms of total yards against — and sent nine defensive players to the NFL, but slipped to 10th in 2012 with a young, rebuilt defense. Cal fired Pendergast last month at the same time it fired Coach Jeff Tedford.

USC found its defensive coordinator this week. Now the Trojans will look for a linebackers coach.

Scottie Hazelton, who spent one season in charge of the Trojans' linebackers, has been hired as the defensive coordinator as part of a new staff at Nevada, CBS' Bruce Feldman reported Friday.

Hazelton, 39, will join new Nevada coach Brian Polian. The move is not unexpected, because it's unknown what Hazelton's short-term fate might have been at USC. The Trojans, as soon as today, are expected to announce the hiring of Clancy Pendergast as their defensive coordinator.

Hazleton came to USC last February after five seasons at North Dakota State, where he served as defensive coordinator for two years and also coached linebackers and defensive linemen. The Bison won a NCAA lower-level championship in 2011 and, under Hazelton, had one of the division's best defenses.

Fears that USC might not have a defensive coordinator in place before signing day appear to have been abated. The Trojans are expected to announce the hiring of Clancy Pendergast on Friday.

The pending announcement, as first reported by Bruce Feldman of CBS, is far from surprising. Pendergast, who most recently served as defensive coordinator at Cal, is the only known candidate to have formally interviewed with Coach Lane Kiffin, and reports of Pendergast's imminent hiring had swirled for days.

USC has been in search of a new defensive architect since Monte Kiffin resigned after the Sun Bowl.

It seems, though, that USC made one last move. The Oregonian reported Thursday that Oregon defensive coordinator Nick Aliotti turned down the same role at USC. Aliotti's situation at Oregon became unclear Wednesday when Coach Chip Kelly jumped to the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles.

Under Pendergast, Cal had the Pac-12's top defense in 2010 and 2011 -- in terms of total yards against -- and sent nine defensive players to the NFL, but slipped to 10th in 2012 with a young, rebuilt defense.